This project seeks to outline a framework for evidence prioritization, that is, for defining the “best evidence.” This framework can improve transparency and also suggest alternatives to reviewers as they make difficult decisions. The intended audience for this document is systematic reviewers with an interest in methodology. As noted above, this document is not intended to be prescriptive, but rather to provide a conceptual construct with options to aid the decisionmaking process. It is only designed for evaluation of evidence on the benefits and harms of interventions; procedures for evaluating other types of evidence bases (e.g., diagnostic studies) are beyond the scope of this report. This is phase 1 of a larger project (phase 2 would involve a formal evaluation of the impact of variations in inclusion criteria on a review's conclusions). Led by the ECRI Institute Evidence-based Practice Center (EPC), this project set out to accomplish the following tasks:

1. Create a list of possible inclusion criteria, and for each criterion, create a list of factors that might affect a reviewer's decision to use it.
2. Create a list of evidence prioritization strategies.
3. List the ways in which evidence prioritization strategies might be formally evaluated.
4. Prepare a summary report for posting on the AHRQ Web site.